I know they are saying we're not gonna be as bad as

[Fresh_Start]

the Depression....but the numbers aren't adding up for me.

The peak unemployment during the Depression was about 25% of the non-farm labor. Somewhere over 15% of the country were still farm workers. And one salary could support a family. I'd hope that many farm workers retained their jobs (even if those jobs were seasonal).

Today, we are looking at unemployment numbers going to break 10-12% nationally. Less than 3% of the country are farm workers: and there's a helleva a drought problem affecting farm workers in several parts of the country so many farm workers won't be able to count on their seasonal work. AND, the kicker for me is that one salary can no longer support a family.
If you look at it as family impact, our 12% unemployment could mean that 24% of families can't afford to keep a roof over their head.

[MichiganVote]

1. One salary at the lower to middle income level hasn't supported a family for the last 25 years.

[Fresh_Start]

2. the depression was in the 1930's

which was a lot longer than 25 years ago

[MichiganVote]

4. So what? Equating a DII with single or double salaries in a family is pointless.

[BlooInBloo]

3. No it won't.

Damn end-days-ers.

[Fresh_Start]

5. it won't reach 10-12%?

RGE Monitor: Q3 2010 – 10.5%
Morgan Stanley: 2009 – 10.0%
Goldman: 2010 – 10.0%
Merrill: 2010 - 10.4%
My company is forecasting higher.

Unemployment is a trailing indicator...the economy needs to turn around for a couple of quarters before unemployment will turn around.

[BlooInBloo]

6. You said it's gonna be as bad as the Great Depression. I said it won't be....

Where is the miscommunication?

[Fresh_Start]

9. if you read the entire OP

you would have seen that I'm proposing that the change in farm workers and the need for two working adults to support a household mean that measuring from the basis of a household perspective, it might be even though of course purely on a calculation of statistics it might appear to be substantially better.

Economic forecasts tend to be overly optimistic during recessions (according a study by the FRB of St Louis).

[Deja Q]

7. How do the previous "jobless recoveries" take part in all this? Or do they? Or not?

[BlooInBloo]

8. Hell if I know...

I'm not the Ask-Me-A-Random-Question guy.

I could have posted the link I got the pic from, though:
http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/03/what_if_we_hadnt_done_the_bailouts.php